Drug charges filed in fatal shooting near Bartlett

SHELBY COUNTY, Tenn. — No charges will be filed in the shooting death of a man near Bartlett Elementary on March 28, according to Shelby County authorities.

Denzel Jordan, 21, told deputies he fired outside his home several times in self-defense, fatally wounding Jeremy Williams, 25. Officers responding to the 11:05 a.m. emergency call found Williams dead on the sidewalk near Jordan’s home on Piper’s Green Lane just outside Bartlett city limits.

Bartlett Police were first to arrive and secured the scene.

Jordan did not flee after the shooting, and Shelby County Sheriff’s Office deputies detained him while they interviewed witnesses and investigated the incident.

Armed with a search warrant, deputies found 33 grams of marijuana in Jordan’s home and charged him with possession of drug paraphernalia (a Class A misdemeanor) and possession of a controlled substance with the intent to manufacture, deliver or sell (a Class A felony), according to court records.

The district attorney declined to press charges in the shooting, according to Earle Farrell, SCSO public information officer.

Jordan was arraigned on the drug charges on March 29 and released the same day on a $10,000 bond. His next court hearing date in Shelby County Criminal Court is at 8:30 a.m. today, April 5.

The school was not related to the shooting and was mentioned in official reports because of its nearness to the crime scene.